The proximity to her family, including her brother, who lives just a few minutes away, has made transitioning into adulthood easier for Maida and her husband.
“If we ever need things fixed on the trailer, my dad and my brother are always so helpful with that,” she said. “If we have a flat tire, they come and help us. If I’m feeling overwhelmed about something with the business, I can walk over and talk to my parents, and they’ve already experienced it for the last 20 years. It’s really wonderful to have that support.”
Maida said she felt some insecurity about what others might think of her living situation for the first six months to a year after moving into the garage apartment, but she has since let that go. She hopes that other people moving back in with their parents to help build stronger futures can do the same.
“In reality, nobody really cares what you’re doing,” she said. “If you’re building something you’re passionate about, that’s the most important thing.”
She also hopes that multigenerational living becomes more common in the US, as it is in many other countries.
“In so many other cultures, it’s so common for families to be living together throughout their entire lives,” she said. “My grandpa lived with my parents for multiple years when I was in middle school and high school, and having him in our home was just so wonderful.”